If You Found Me At Last
by xlolabug12x
Summary: Little moments like these were the ones he treasured the most. Gruvia.


**Author's Note: **Just a quick piece I did after seeing Mashima's Gruvia picture on Twitter (If you haven't seen it, go to the Gruvia tag on tumblr or Mashima's Twitter. It's lovely). I fangirled so hard I fell out of bed and regained my lost Gruvia inspiration. I feel loads better now. Gotta love Trollshima.

This was both done and posted on my phone so sorry for mistakes. I had to get it out quickly. O_O Not really satisfied with it but I hope you are.

Part fluffiness, part seriousness. Why do I insist on writing about feelings when I don't even understand them myself?

* * *

Juvia tilted her head and stared curiously at the giant bowl of ice in Gray's hands. It appeared to be a pile of fuzzy ice crystals, topped with a syrupy red concoction that was entirely foreign to the water mage. Judging from the excited smile on Gray's face, it was probably something that was made for eating.

She couldn't contain her curiosity. "What is that, Gray-sama?"

Gray looked at her incredulously. "You don't know what shaved ice is? It's probably the best part of everyone's childhood! Well, mine at least."

_That _explained everything.

Juvia frowned. "Juvia didn't get to experience fun things when she was a child."

Silence.

Gray scratched the back of his head awkwardly, suddenly feeling a bit ashamed and guilty. He was sure she hadn't meant to make him feel bad and it was probably more of an offhand comment than anything, but that didn't prevent a small bead of sweat from forming at the back of his neck. Sure, his childhood was traumatizing and something he didn't like to recall often, but it had been happy and fun when his parents were still around. He was lucky enough to have experienced love, while Juvia wasn't. As far as he knew, she had been an orphan since infancy. "Ah...I didn't know," he said lamely, knowing full well that he did.

Juvia continued to stare at the shaved ice quietly, seemingly ignoring his words.

That was another thing. Juvia had been awfully quiet ever since he and his team returned from their mission to save the giants' village. She still conversed with him regularly and had her moments of silliness, but had an air of melancholy that had yet to disappear.

He wouldn't say it, but it worried him. She wasn't as bad as she was in Phantom Lord, but that gloominess weighed on his shoulders. In a way, wasn't he the original cause for her happiness? For her to be sad again must have meant he did something wrong.

He made a vow to put a smile on her face again. She was his friend, and his friends deserved to smile.

"Hey, Juvia...are you-"

She cut him off, much to his surprise. "Can Juvia...have some?"

Gray blinked at her unexpected request. "Er...sure?" He said uncertainly as he handed her the spoon. "You can have some."

In a flash, Juvia took the entire bowl from his hands and bit off a large chunk of the ice, giggling as she did so. It tasted surprisingly delicious, making her crave more. Gray blanched.

"Hey, I said some!" He frowned indignantly.

Juvia sent him a mischievous smile and took off with the bowl in hand, cackling madly. Gray could do nothing but gape at her retreating figure in shock and distress, wondering what the hell was up with her sudden change in demeanor.

He blinked as it finally hit him. "She took my ice."

He jumped off the bench and took off after the laughing girl, yelling "Stop it! That's my ice, dammit!"

An evil-sounding snigger was all he got in return.

Despite the situation, he couldn't contain the smile that spread across his face as he ran after her. This side of Juvia was definitely one he liked to see.

Juvia dashed through the doors of the hotel they were staying at and plopped the half-eaten bowl on the counter, prompting curious stares from the receptionists. She jumped into the elevator, squealing when she saw Gray heading in her direction. Luckily, the doors slid shut before he could make it in himself.

Gray let out a resigned sigh, banging his fist lightly against the closed partition. He had been moments away from hopping in! He shrugged and went to pick up what she left in the lobby. A scowl overtook his face at the sight of the half-eaten bowl of shaved ice in his hands. "Damn it all."

In all honesty, he wasn't mad at Juvia. He knew she was just messing around with him and he could always get more. Besides, to see her doing something so silly and outlandish was a gift in itself, so how could he be mad? He was glad to see her smiling like that and acting like herself again.

"Of course she would go up to the girls' rooms. The one place I can't reach her," he muttered to himself as he dug into what was left of his shaved ice.

Inspiration struck him suddenly and he grinned. He was so getting her back for this.

* * *

A few days prior, Master Makarov and Mirajane had announced that all of Fairy Tail would be taking a short vacation to a beach resort, in honor of their victory during the Grand Magic Games. The news came as a relief to the guild, as most felt they needed a vacation from all the chaos they had endured these past months. After they had gotten back to Magnolia many requests had come flying in, and due to all the missions that were taken, they had raised enough money to rent out the resort just for themselves for a few days.

At the moment all of the mages were enjoying some time on the beach, soaking up the warm sun since it was currently rainy season in Magnolia. Gray was walking around the beachfront , looking for Juvia with a scheming look in his eyes. He spotted a flash of blue hair in the distance and quickly focused his eyes, but found himself looking at Levy instead of Juvia.

Gajeel had been buried in the sand by both Levy and Pantherlily, leaving only his head popping out and scowl gracing his features. He flinched when he saw Levy pull out a small makeup kit.

"Oi, shrimp! What the hell do ya think you're doing?"

Levy could only giggle as Gajeel struggled to get out of the sand, face paling in horror when he realized he could not move his arms.

"Don't worry, Gajeel," she smiled, brushing some blush onto his cheeks. He sneezed. "This won't be too bad!"

"Lily! What are you doing, just sitting there? Help me, dammit!"

Lily just shrugged and continued to sip his kiwi juice.

Gray snorted at the sight of Levy putting red lipstick on the protesting Gajeel, wondering when the hell the iron dragon slayer would realize his feelings for the smaller woman. The two worked exceptionally well together, and it was obvious Levy had a crush on him. What was holding him back?

He felt a sinking feeling in his chest, but couldn't figure out why.

Shrugging off the strange feeling, he continued his search for Juvia, watching his guild mates as he did so. Natsu and Lucy were arguing (something about a burnt swimsuit), Elfman and Evergreen were glaring at each other (luckily Evergreen still had her glasses on), Alzack and Bisca were making a sandcastle with Asuka, and Erza and Wendy were eating the leftover candy reward from an earlier mission. Gray saw Natsu's face break out into a grin during their argument and Lucy couldn't help but smile back.

He rolled his eyes. Another couple that had yet to realize their feelings. Why were these people so dense?

The sinking feeling came back, but he shook his head fiercely and continued his search for Juvia.

He finally spotted her in the distance, slightly isolated from everybody else and laying down on a towel. Her arms were crossed behind her head and her eyes were closed, a serene smile on her face. He tried not to let his eyes linger too long on her swimsuit.

He approached her as quietly as he could, intending to catch her off guard. His plan was simple. Create an ice dome around her and block the sunlight, leaving her cold and unable to get out. He would keep her there for an hour, tops. Not a super harsh punishment (it was all he could think of, honestly), but enough to chill her bones, since she was more susceptible to long periods of coldness because she was made of water. Nobody stole his shaved ice and got away with it unscathed.

He put his right fist over his left palm, gathered his magic, and-

"I know you're there, Gray-sama."

He froze. Her eyes were still closed, for God's sake. And he had been super quiet! Did she have a built in Graydar or something?!

"Come lay with Juvia."

His face flushed crimson at her unexpected and bold command. "Wh-What?!"

Juvia sighed. "Not that way, Gray-sama. Although..." She bit her lip and blushed slightly. "Juvia wouldn't mind that, as well."

Gray's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "I, um..." He was at a complete loss for words.

Juvia giggled, despite her embarrassment. "But really, can you please sit down next to Juvia?"

Gray saw no reason to deny her request, so he sat down slowly, still slightly flustered from her earlier remark. Juvia had yet to open her eyes.

Both were quiet, Juvia soaking up the sunshine and Gray watching the waves crash over the beach. Neither the noticed the smiles and raised eyebrows their guild mates sent their way. They were isolated from everyone, after all.

Gray felt a warm sort of lethargy hit him the longer he sat there, making him feel relaxed and slightly sleepy. It was as if the energy had been drained from him all of a sudden, but he didn't mind. He laid down next to Juvia and also closed his eyes.

After a few more minutes of being lost in their thoughts, Juvia spoke again.

"I don't think I ever said thank you."

Gray's eyes fluttered open and he tilted his head slightly to look at her. "What for?"

Juvia's cheeks tinted pink again and she looked slightly reluctant, as if it had slipped out of her mouth by accident, but she pressed on. "If it weren't for you I would have never been able to enjoy this sunshine," she whispered.

Gray's eyes softened and he found himself at a loss for words once again.

Juvia continued to speak. "You don't have to say anything. But I want you to know that I'm grateful."

This woman never ceased to surprise Gray. One moment she could be extremely goofy and weird, and the next she could be pouring her heart out to him. The words were little, but the meaning behind them was so much. An abrupt fondness for her bloomed in his chest and his cheeks flushed.

It was suddenly clear to him now, why Juvia used to treat him the way she did. He still didn't like the way she put him on a pedestal, but her motives made sense now. He took her rain away. He made her happy again, after all those years of gloom and depression. He introduced her to Fairy Tail and all of her friends, and taught her the true meaning of love and friendship, something she didn't have before.

Gray found himself thankful that he had the opportunity to befriend the woman laying next to him. A person like her didn't deserve so much sadness. He didn't know what the foreign feeling inside his chest was, but he was glad he was able to make her happy.

Because she made _him_ happy.

Juvia's eyes flitted open due to the lack of response and she looked at Gray shyly. Her eyes widened at the wide grin directed at her.

"I'm grateful for you, too."

* * *

**AN: **Was it cute? PLEASE SAY IT WAS CUTE

Probably not what you expected but I HAD TO WRITE SOMETHING *sob* I just had the first scene pictured in my mind and I basically vomited out the words bahahaha. OOC ERRWHERE

Why the hell do I feel the need to add a backstory to everything? -_-

I feel that if Juvia stops fangirling she will be quiet and serious (more than she already is) but with random spurts of silliness.

My train of thought for that last scene was basically this: Gray and Juvia at the beach = beach (duh) = sunshine = Juvia remembering Gray taking her rain away = fluff. I DON'T KNOW

I'M SORRY I KNOW I'M A HOT MESS AT THE MOMENT

I'll leave now. *walk of shame*


End file.
